Connecticut Huskies vs Butler Bulldogs Prediction, 1/9/2021 College Basketball Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Connecticut Huskies vs Butler Bulldogs

Date: Saturday, January 9, 2021

Location: Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN

TV: CBSSN

Odds/Point Spread: Connecticut (-4)

The Connecticut Huskies (5-1) travel to Hinkle Fieldhouse on Saturday where they'll meet the Butler Bulldogs (3-5). Connecticut opens this game as 4-point favorites. The O/U opens at 130.5.

Connecticut heads into this game with a win-loss record of 5-1 for the campaign. The Huskies are shooting 34.6% on three-point attempts (44 of 127) and 71.6% from the free throw line. They average 75.5 points per game (124th in the country) on 43.8% from the field. They turn it over 12.8 times per game and as a unit are committing 19.7 personal fouls every game. As a team, Connecticut is pulling down 42.0 rebounds per game and is sitting with 80 assists for the season, which ranks 284th in the nation in terms of passing. When they are on defense, the Huskies have forced 13.3 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 19.0 personal fouls. They currently rank 26th in college basketball in giving up assists to their opponents with 56 surrendered for the campaign. The Huskies defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 39.4% (134 of 340) and they surrender 33.2 boards per contest as a squad. They are relinquishing 27.4% from 3-point land and they are ranked 46th in D-1 in PPG from their opponents (63.5).

The Connecticut Huskies took the court against the Marquette Golden Eagles and earned the victory with a final of 65-54 in their last contest. Connecticut finished the contest with a 41.4% FG percentage (24 out of 58) and knocked down 8 of 16 three-point shots. From the free throw line, the Huskies knocked down 9 of 13 attempts for a rate of 69.2%. In relation to rebounding, they compiled 41 with 14 of them being of the offensive sort. They also distributed 14 dimes for this game in addition to getting 2 steals and 3 rejections. When it comes to the defense, Connecticut allowed the other team to shoot 41.4% from the floor on 24 of 58 shooting. Marquette distributed 13 assists and had 5 steals in this game. Moreover, the Golden Eagles grabbed 26 boards (8 offensive, 18 defensive) and had 3 blocks. Marquette finished the game shooting 71.4% when shooting free throws by knocking down 5 of their 7 attempts. They also converted 5 out of their 18 tries from beyond the arc.

Tyler Polley is one player who came through for the game. He ended up scoring 23 points on 8 out of 12 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 24 minutes and also totaled 4 boards. Polley went 66.7% from the floor and also dished out 2 assists. Another guy that was a determining factor in this game for the Huskies was Isaiah Whaley. He grabbed 13 rebounds and also accounted for 3 assists. He finished the game at 70.0% from the floor for this game via 7-of-10 (15 points). When this game wrapped up, Whaley was on the court for 33 minutes.

Butler has a win-loss mark of 3-5 for the year. As an offensive unit, the Bulldogs are hitting on 41.9% from the field, which ranks 273rd in college hoops. Butler has totaled 513 pts for the season (64.1 per contest) and they collect 31.9 boards per contest. They are dishing out assists 11.8 times per contest (279th in Division 1) and they turn it over 10.6 times per contest. The Bulldogs are committing 16.5 personal fouls per contest and they hit 61.8% from the charity stripe. The Bulldogs on the defensive end are ranked 156th in college basketball in points allowed per contest with 68.6. They are forcing their opponents into 12.0 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 47.4% from the floor (316th in the country). The Butler defense allows 38.1% on shots from distance (61 of 160) and opponents are converting on 72.4% of their shots from the free throw line. They have given up 15.0 assists and 32.6 total boards per game, which is ranked 281st and 74th in college hoops.

When they last stepped on the court, the Butler Bulldogs walked away with a victory by a final of 63-55 when they played the Georgetown Hoyas. The Bulldogs were able to snag 24 defensive boards and 7 offensive boards for a total of 31 for this game. They also turned away 2 shots while recording 7 steals in the game. The Hoyas earned 15 personal fouls for this game which got the Bulldogs to the free throw line for a total of 15 attempts. They were able to make 10 of them for a percentage of 66.7%. With respect to shots from beyond the arc, Butler knocked down 7 of 22 tries (31.8%). At the conclusion of this game, the Bulldogs finished 23 for 60 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 38.3%. The Bulldogs permitted the Hoyas to convert 20 out of their 59 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 33.9% in the matchup. They shot 42.9% from distance by going 9 out of 21 and finished the contest at 6 out of 8 at the charity stripe (75.0%). In relation to cleaning up the glass, Butler allowed Georgetown to collect 41 in total (11 on the offensive side).

Chuck Harris ended up having an impact for the Bulldogs for the matchup. He made 7 out of 15 in the game for a field goal percentage of 46.7%, which gave him 18 points. Harris grabbed 3 rebounds in his 32 mins and accounted for 5 dimes for the contest. Another guy who was a determining factor for Butler was Jair Bolden. He totaled 13 points in his 36 minutes on the court by going 4 of 10 shooting for this game. Bolden finished going 40.0% from the floor while also earning 2 assists and 6 boards.

Who will win tonight's college basketball game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Butler (+4)

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